The 2019 Open Competition Award Winner was awarded to Buc Naked (APHA stallion Fancys Smokn Hotstuff x Far Colette) a 12 year old pinto buckskin Half-Arabian gelding owned by Janet Leli and bred by Dianna Jackson.

Squiggy began his show career in the open circuit in 2017. With his amateur rider in the saddle, he has earned many accomplishments in the open shows and at Pinto recognized shows where he competes in Halter, Ranch halter, Showmanship, Horsemanship, Western Pleasure, Trail, Ranch Riding, Sport horse, and Leadline. Squiggy has earned more than 30 Champion and reserve champion titles in his show career. He has also won the NJ Pinto Horse Association Year-end High Score Award in 2017 and 2018.

Since Buc Naked has been shown in more open shows than AHA recognized shows, Janet decided to enroll him in the Open event incentive program where he has earned the OEIP high-point award in the Walk-trot division in both 2017 and 2018. He is currently leading in OEIP points for 2019 in Walk-trot, showmanship, and Halter. He has earned over 100 points and hours in the OEIP and FRP program and is close to hitting his 200 point milestone for OEIP. Through AHA recognized competitions, Buc Naked has earned USEF Region Horse of the year in 2017 and 2018 in Halter and Western Pleasure in 2018 and Reserve Champion Western Pleasure in 2018. In Janet’s local AHA affiliate club Buc Naked has been awarded the High-Score Awards for in-hand and western in 2017 and 2018, and he has been the Half-Arabian Versatility Award recipient at past NJHAHA Arabian shows.

He truly represents the versatility of the Arabian and is consistently successful in the western all-around competitions. Fellow competitors and judges, have often complimented his performances and his kind disposition. He has won over the hearts of many Leadline riders who have ridden and shown him. From all of us at AHA, we wish Janet and Squiggy the best of luck as they continue their show career together.

The 2019 Ambassador Award winner is Empres++++// (Monogramm x Empressa), a 24 year old Polish Pruebred Arabian Stallion owned by Prue Critchley and bred by Michalow State Stud Farm, Poland.

At the age of three, Empres started in competition life as a racehorse in Warsaw, Poland before he was used for breeding for a few farms. In 2002, he was sold to the Netherlands where he was shown throughout Europe, where he earned First Premium at the Dutch National Show. Empres was exported to the United States in 2007, which is how Prue was able to purchase him at the age of sixteen in 2011. He competed extensively for a few years once he arrived in Canada receiving many Regional and National titles in a variety of disciplines. Empres received his Legion of Masters/Excellence in 2016. Empres has entertained many audiences over the years including a group of young children at the 2015 Canadian Nationals. For two years he competed in the Liberty class at the Western Canadian Breeders Show where he was crowned champion both years as he performed for a large audience at the Saturday evening showcase.

In 2018, Breyer Model horses chose Empres as a model horse that was released early that year. He was a very popular Model horse and was even invited to attend Breyerfest in 2018, an annual event held at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY. Not only was he adored by thousands of fans, but he also performed Liberty and Mounted Native Costume each of the three days of Breyerfest. He was loved by many children and adults who visited him at his stall or at the meet and greets after every performance. Many people said that Empres was there favorite horse at the event. His model horse sold out at the event especially after watching his performances. In March 2019, Empres was invited as a Celebrity Horse, to the Royal Manitoba Winter Fair where he had hundreds of visitors visit him at his stall daily. Each day of the fair Empres represented the Arabian horse well during an Ag-education talk about the breed.

Empres also made appearances and performances in Liberty and Mounted Native Costume at the Midwest Horse Fair and several other Arabian horse shows in Canada as well as being invited back to Breyerfest in 2019.  Empres’s beauty, versatility, kind disposition not only makes him popular and loved by children, but by adults as well. Empres is truly a remarkable Arabian stallion that represents all the amazing attributes the Arabian horse has to offer the equine industry and the world.

Congratulations to the 2019 Distance Horse of the Year, Giacomo “Jack”, a 15 year old gelding out of Gianni X Ahlaks Angel, and owned by Frances Muench.

Jack began his distance career in December of 2015 at not quite 12 years of age; since then this rock solid gelding has covered over 2000 miles. He has completed 36 North American Trail Conference (NATRC) rides and 4 American Endurance Ride Conference (AERC) Limited Distance rides. The 2019 season was a stellar season for Jack as he completed 840 miles, 14 NATRC rides in 7 different states with 8 - 1^st place awards, 7 of those being Sweepstakes. This year he takes the honor of earning NATRC’s prestigious President’s Cup (National Sweepstakes Champion award) and garnering other Regional NATRC awards. His previous accomplishments include multiple NATRC National Championships and AHA Region 9 Championships.

Jack originally was bred to be an endurance carriage driving horse but while waiting for him to mature, Jack’s original owner, who was battling cancer, realized that after 8 years, Jack should have a chance to do what he was bred for and gave him to a trainer. This is where Frances and Jack’s paths came together, Frances states “We literally hit the trails and haven’t looked back. He travels well, takes care of himself on the trail, eating and drinking when he can while covering miles of various terrain whether technically steep and rocky or flat and fast. Competing in NATRC has enabled our partnership to bloom thanks to mentoring and guidance from other successful friends and competitors in the sport”.